How Parents’ Ideals are Offset by Uncertainty and Fears: A Systematic Review of the Experiences of European Parents regarding the Sexual Education of Their Children
Noorman, Maaike A.J.; den Daas, Chantal; de Wit, John B.F.
(2023) Journal of Sex Research, volume 60, issue 7, pp. 1034 - 1044
(Article)
Abstract
Parents have a critical role to play in the sexual education of their children. We conducted a systematic review of studies assessing the experiences of parents regarding the role they play in the sexual education of their children. We included qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods studies conducted among parents in
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Europe. We searched PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus, and screened 20,244 unique records. Forty-nine studies enrolling 18,083 unique parents met inclusion criteria. The studies show that parents have ideals regarding the sexual education of their children that center around the importance of trust, open conversations, and honesty. However, challenges and concerns, related to parents’ and children’s gender, children’s age, children’s specific situations, and limited parental knowledge and communication skills prevented them from living up to these ideals. Parents pointed to the role of other institutions as ways to support and strengthen parents’ contributions to the sexual development of their children. We conclude that parents may require guidance and support to identify what is appropriate sexual education for their children, based on age, gender, and other characteristics, how to provide appropriate sexual education, and to strengthen their sexual communication skills and knowledge of contemporary sexual health issues.
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Keywords: Effective communication, Young-people, Attitudes, Mothers, Interventions, Adolescents, Fathers, Abuse, Barriers, Behavior, General Psychology, Gender Studies, History and Philosophy of Science, Sociology and Political Science
ISSN: 0022-4499
Publisher: Routledge
Note: Funding Information: This study is part of a project funded by Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek Seksualiteit under grant 19.006. The authors thank Kristin Jansen, Oka Storms, Hannan Nhass, Simon Timmerman, Nelleke Westerveld, Wilma Schakenraad and Shirin Eftekharijam from Movisie, the Dutch National Centre of Expertise of Social Issues. Funding Information: This work was supported by the Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek Seksualiteit [19.006]. This study is part of a project funded by Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek Seksualiteit under grant 19.006. The authors thank Kristin Jansen, Oka Storms, Hannan Nhass, Simon Timmerman, Nelleke Westerveld, Wilma Schakenraad and Shirin Eftekharijam from Movisie, the Dutch National Centre of Expertise of Social Issues. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.
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